Flames of Rebellion
by The SteelNerfer
Summary: After the Fall of Beacon, the kingdoms took measures to make sure the same thing didn't happen to them. Atlas in particular did this by stripping away most of the rights of it's citizens, to make sure no one got the chance to even approach the Academy. Obviously, people didn't like this, so they rose up, only to be brutally put down. This is not one of them.
1. First Strike

"Move move move!" The sargent yelled as several grenades landed into the rebel's foxhole. The squad of 5 jumped out as they exploded, two of them getting gunned down as they scrambled to get back, jumping back in to take cover from the Atlesian androids that pinned them down. The ground was barren, dirt, stone, and wood scattered through the battlefield, as fires burned everywhere, and gunships and fighters flew through the orange-tinted night sky, raining hell down on the rebel forces. As the battle between the rebels and Atlesian military raged on, a man continued to stand tall, on a hill behind the rebel lines. As snipers tried to pick him off, he waved the banner of the rebels: A six-striped red, white, and blue banner, alternating colors in that order. Meanwhile, on the battlefield, a rebel, barely an adult, kept his head down behind a mound of dirt, waiting for the machine gun fire to stop pelting the dirt and stone walls that kept him safe from harm. The four remaining member of his squad laid and crouched beside him, waiting for the blizzard of bullets to end.

"We ain't makin' it outta this one, Sarge!" A blonde-haired, blue-eyed man said, clutching a minigun in his hands.

"Gunner, shut up!" A black-haired, grey-eyed wolf faunus said, holding a revolver and longsword.

"He's right though," A blue-haired, green-eyed girl said, holding two smgs, "There are too many of them!"

"Lil' Commander," The old, grizzled sergeant shouted over the sounds of battle to the youngest of the group, a brown-haired and brown-eyed boy, no older than 18, "Any words?"

The boy sat up, leaning on a stone wall for support. "We'll make it out, we have to!"

"How do you know!?" Gunner yelled.

"I've been with all of you for nearly a year now, you won't give up so easy! We _must_ live, for our friends, families, and brothers and sisters in arms! We _must_ keep fighting, to let those Atlas bastards hear the Cry of Freedom! And Sarge!?"

"What is it!?" The Sargent yelled, lowering his rifle as he looked at the boy.

"Fuck you for using that nickname!" The rest of the squad laughed.

"Well said, Jason!" The black-haired girl shouted.

"Thanks, Blade!" Jason said picking up his rifle from where he lay and kneeling behind the wall.

"What's the plan Sarge!?" The blue-haired girl asked.

"When that gun stops to reload, we get the hell out of here! Blade, Gunner, use your semblances to cover us! Ocean, you and I clear a path with ours! And Jason, you run like hell! Got it!?"

"Yes Sir!" the four rebels yelled.

"On my signal!" As they prepared their semblances, Jason kept an ear out for the gunfire near them to stop. Soon, the distinctive _click_ of a machine gun running out of bullets was heard.

"They're out, Sarge!" Jason yelled.

"Go go go!" Sarge yelled, standing and charging towards the rear lines, his normally red eyes turning green as he looked around in the dark, scouting a path. Ocean followed, summoning water from her hand to blast away any obstacles in their path. Gunner fired his minigun with flawless accuracy, completely controlling the recoil as he fired, while Blade combined her revolver and sword into a spear and created a shield of grey energy, blocking bullets as they ran. And Jason ran like the devil itself was on his heels.

And, effectively, it was.

"Specialists!" A rebel yelled, before screaming out in pain.

"Shit! Move it!" Sarge yelled, continuing to lead the squad to the rear lines of the Rebels. Other rebel squads moved out and started running, often getting cut down by machine gun fire or Atlas specialists, former huntsmen and huntresses that had become dogs of the military, able to slaughter a squad of rebels in seconds. After a minute of straight sprinting, they jumped into the trench where the rebels had set up their front line. A Major walked up to them.

"Sargent, report!" He yelled.

"Specialists have joined the fight, we're being pushed back, as far as I could tell, Sir!" Sarged yelled back, standing at attention.

"Damnit, we'll have to fall back!" The major yelled. "Thank you, Sargent, you may fall back, but I suggest you wait until we start the covering bombardment!"

"Understood Sir, we-"

"They're here! Everyone run! Ru-!" Another rebel was cut off from finishing his message, as the Atlas specialists reached the trenches, mixing the blood of rebels with the mucd that had gathered at the bottom of the fortification.

"You heard the soldier, move!" The major yelled, drawing his sword and charging at a specialist who just jumped in.

"Come on," Jason said, "We can't get cut down here."

"Squad fall back!" Sarge yelled, jumping over the rear of the trench, the rest of the squadron following suit. They ran through the war-torn forest, Nearly completely decimated by just three days of fighting. As they ran, a Bullhead flew over them, and a specialist in a white uniform, carrying a saber, jumped out. She had white hair, strands of which whipped in the wind as she used a glyph to charge the squad.

"Shit!" Gunner yelled, barely managing to duck out of the way of her blade. Sarge stood up and fired at the enemy, only to have his shots blocked by the former Huntress.

"Move, get out of here!" Sarge yelled, drawing his own greatsword and engaging the specialist in a duel.

"Come on!" Blade shouted, running past as the huntsman and specialist locked blades. Gunner, Ocean, and Jason followed suit, leaving the two badasses to duel it out.

When they arrived at camp, they were too late. Gunfire ripped through the camp, and fire blazed, bringing light to the rebels and soldiers that now fought in hand-to-hand combat.

"We gotta get out of here." Jason said, seeing the carnage. "Scatter, we'll regroup in Mistral, with however many other rebels you guys can get."

"Wait," Blade started, "Wouldn't it be better if we went as a squad, that way we can stand and fight?"

"If a specialist shows up, even with the four of us, we're going to be killed. If we scatter, at least a few of us could probably live." Jason looked at his squad, all looking like they were depressed. "Look, I don't like this either. But if this rebellion is going to continue, we can't take risks. We don't know how many others are going to make it out. We have to assume we're the only ones that will make it out. If we can, we find other survivors, and rebuild from there. Now, let's move out." Gunner walked up to him.

"Good luck, buddy." Gunner said, Jason giving a chuckle as the two friends shook hands.

"Good luck to you too." He looked at the two girls. "And with the both of you."

"Please," Ocean said, "make it out alive."

"No promises." Jason joked.

"I'll see you all in Mistral." Blade said, walking off to a motorcycle. Gunner and Ocean took two other bikes, leaving Jason to walk to Mistral. As gunfire closed in on him, he sprinted south, towards the ocean just a few dozen miles away.

 _One week later . . ._

The rebel, still dressed in his dirtied grey fatigues, snuck off the boat he stowed away on, making sure to keep out of sight of the security. With his knife and pistol strapped to his right side, and his rifle slung over his shoulder, he left the city, soon moving through the forest, towards Mistral, hoping to meet back up with his squad. However, unknown to him, a man dressed in white robes watched.

"Agent Charlie, reporting in." He said into a headset. "One rebel, male, brown hair. Armed, expect him to fight back."

"Good work, agent." The man on the other side of the com said. "I'll send a specialist after him. Get back here, we need you for the King's plan." The spy nodded, before leaving the rooftops.

Meanwhile, Jason hijacked a bike and took off, speeding towards Mistral.

 _The next day . . ._

The only sound that could be heard in the forest was the motorcycle that Jason rode, trying to regroup with his squad, the status of he didn't know.

"Gods, I hope they made it." He said, continuing his ride. After minutes of riding, he turned as something began to approach. "Oh shit!" He shouted, gunning the engine of his bike as the Atlesian Bullhead approached rapidly. The twin miniguns revved as the bike clocked out at 90 mph. "Come on, come on!" He yelled, trying desperately to move faster. However, it wasn't enough as a sound that could only be described as a very loud lawn mower was heard, as well as the sharp whizz of bullets, and milliseconds later Jason was desperately trying to control the bike as it jerked out of control. The bullhead flew past as he jumped off the bike, sending it into a tree. He looked up and, seeing the Bullhead turning to make another pass, darted into the forest, taking cover beneath the thick mess of branches and leaves, hoping to lose the gunship. Then, branches snapped as he turned around, knowing what just dropped down as he heard the gunship pass over him again.

"Sam." He said, preparing to draw his primary weapon of choice: _Bowie_ , a long knife that had a .410-gauge shotgun built into the hilt with three shells loaded, and a square D-guard to use as a sort of defense as well as knuckles if needed.

"Jason." The newcomer said, standing straight in his uniform: a white military jacket, pants, and boots, with a blue undershirt, and a white beret covering his black hair. Their blue and brown eyes locked gazes, waiting for either to make the first move. Sam sighed. "We don't have to do this, Brother."

"Agreed." Jason said, turning and sprinting away from his older brother.

"Damnit, wait up!" Sam shouts after him, giving chase. The two siblings jumped over longs and swung over brush, in a chase that reminded both of when they were younger. Soon, it was brought to an end, as Jason quickly stopped as he saw the edge of a cliff, cutting off his chance of a safe escape. Sam quickly caught up, both panting from the chase.

"Well," Sam said, between breaths, "There's one way out of this where I don't have to kill you." Jason looked over the ledge, and then back at his brother.

"I see two." He said. Sam looked confused, before seeing Jason reaching for _Bowie_.

"Don't you fucking dare." Jason drew the knife and attached a grapple hook to the barrel, making it look like it had a spiked pommel.

"See you around, bro." With that, he turned and jumped off the cliff. After fifty feet of free falling, he pulled the trigger, firing the hook into the rock. He continued to fall, hitting the cliff face as he fell, but rapidly slowed until his feet touched the ground. He detached the grapple hook, sheathed the knife, and quickly flipped Sam off before bolting back into the woods, limping with the injuries he gained from the descent.


	2. The Meeting

She drove her bike down the long, dusty road, her long blonde hair flowing behind her as she sped down, leaving a long, narrow cloud of dust behind her. Like many of the huntsmen and huntresses that survived after the Battle of Beacon, she had gone off on her own journey, to find her sister, who had just left after the fight.

With her cybernetic arm, she revved the engines, making the forest that nearly surrounded her one green blur. As she rode, a Bullhead flew overhead, and soon she heard the twin mini guns firing. As she stopped, seeing a crashed grey dirt bike, shouting came from the forest, which she followed. She ran, following the path of trampled brush and branches until reaching a cliff, with a man in an Atlas specialist uniform, a long rapier strapped to his side, looking over the edge of the cliff.

"What's going on?" The girl asked, rushing up to the soldier. He turned around.

"My brother. I need to bring him in, for his sake. Do you think you can chase after him?" He asked.

"First, what's your name?"

"Major Samuel Bower, Miss . . . ?"

"Yang Xiao Long." Yang said, looking over the cliff.

"The direction he went leads to a road. I'll meet you there, whether you get him or not." Sam said, turning to walk back to the road.

"Oh, could you bring my bike with you? I'll need it."

"Alright, I'll have my men pick it up." With that, he left into the forest, back to the sight of the crash, and Yang jumped down, using _Ember Celica_ to slow her descent. After landing, she bolted in the brother's direction, which was obvious due to the trampled greenery.

Jason sprinted, continuing to put distance between himself and his brother. He drew _Bowie_ , using it to cut down brush and thin branches that sat in his way. As he ran away from the cliff, a Bullhead roared overhead.

"Well shit." He said, changing direction, so he wouldn't meet up with his brother again. After spending a few minutes on this altered course, he ran into a gas station/bar, and went inside. There was the bartender and one patron, who looked like he'd tried to empty the bar, but got so drunk he forgot about the alcohol altogether and just sat there, staring off into space. Not a perfect cover, but luckily there were shelves of products that he could duck behind in case of a shootout. He walked up to the bar and sat down. The bartender walked over.

"What can I get for you?" He asked.

"Pale ale." The bartender nodded and grabbed a bottle from a fridge, placing it in front of Jason, who quickly paid for it and started drinking. Soon, a blonde-hair girl walked in, wearing a tan jacket with long tails, black pants with a purple handkerchief around her left knee, and high leather boots, with a yellow bracelet on her left wrist, and a robotic arm that replaced her right one, with leather gauntlets and black fingerless gloves covering most of her forearms. She wore dark sunglasses, looking around at the drunkard, then at the bartender, then at Jason. He continued drinking from the bottle as she walked over and sat next to him.

"Aren't you a little young to be here?" The bartender asked. She took her sunglasses off and had a little smile on her face.

"Water." She said, and the bartender nodded before bringing her a bottle. She opened it and took a long drink, while the rebel simply looked ahead.

"Heh heh heh, hey there, pretty." The drunken man said, moving over to the girl. Jason swapped the magazine in _Bowie_ for one that contained three concussive rounds in it.

"Leave the little lady alone, bud." He said, before taking another swig from his bottle. The newcomer gave Jason a glare.

"And what're you, her boyfriend?" The drunkard said in a slurred speech, standing up, and wobbling over to Jason.

"Look, I'm already fighting against my own brother, I really don't need a fight right now. Just back the fuck off." He said, standing up and facing the drunkard.

"You back off." The man said, stumbling over to Jason, winding up a hook punch.

"Fuck it." Jason quickly broke the haymaker with his left forearm, before delivering a kick square in the man's stomach, forcing him to double over and stumble backwards. He drew _Bowie_ and turned the safety off, spinning the knife so he held it backhand. He stood the man up and put the bottom of the hilt against the man's torso. Jason squeezed the trigger, sending the man through the double doors. "Goodbye!" Jason said, flipping the bird before sheathing the knife and returning to his spot at the bar. He resumed drinking as the girl looked at him.

"What?" He said, before setting the empty bottle down and standing.

"That was awesome. Where'd you learn to fight like that?"

"Atlas." Jason replied, putting the bottle cap back on the empty bottle.

"Who are you?" She asked.

"Jason. And you're . . . ?"

"Yang Xiao Long. Jason Bower?" Jason snapped his head towards Yang.

"Who told you that?" He asked, preparing to draw his knife again. Yang held her hands up in defense.

"Woah, easy. Your brother wanted me to bring you in. Why?" Jason chuckled, sitting back at the bar.

"You saw his uniform, right?" She nodded. "And you know about the civil war in Atlas?" She looked at him confused. "Thought so. Well, after the Fall of Beacon, the Atlas government shut down the borders, and basically took away our rights. So, obviously, we rose up. And they pushed back, hard, leading to where I am now."

"I see." She said, taking another drink from her water.

"So, what are you gonna do? Try to take me in, possibly end the Rebellion? Or let me go, give him a story so freedom can return to Atlas?" He said, looking at Yang. A few tense moments passed, as the rebel waited for the huntress to say something. As he waited, he looked for an escape route. _Alright,_ he thought, _run if she doesn't get in the way. If not, grab_ Bowie _, and blast her out of the way, then run like hell. Don't want to have to kill an innocent._

"Alright, do you have a story in mind?" She asked. _Thank the fucking gods. Bad choice of words._ Jason thought, soon concocting a story.

"Here, say I punched you in the face, which stunned you, and then bolted into the forest. After you recovered, you chased after me, but lost me in the tangle that is the forest. Wait here for about 10 minutes, then go back to him. Timing is key." As he laid out the story, the bartender put another bottle in front of him, which caused him to look up in confusion.

"A thanks for getting him out of here. He hasn't left or paid in days." Jason nodded, before opening and drinking from the bottle.

"So . . . What are you doing here?" Yang asked him. He stopped drinking and put the bottle down.

"Well, the last battle we had with Atlesian forces lasted a few days, before everything went to shit. After the battle, as well as our base camp and sargent, I told the rest of Team REBL to scatter, and for us to meet up in Mistral."

"Team REBL?"

"Me and my squad were attending Atlas when the Fall of Beacon happened. School ended for the most part after that, and we worked on protecting the city from Grimm. Well, until the Schnees performed a coup and took over the government. They silenced anything, as to keep rumors from being spread. It's horrible up there. Rights that someone from Vale would take for granted, is now only a dream. So, me and my team, along with one of our teachers, joined this most recent rebellion. After the specialists joined the battle, we were pushed back, and that's when we split. Clearly, we've made a name for ourselves. Why my brother's hunting me down now instead of suppressing freedom up there." Jason took another swig from the bottle.

"Why are you two fighting? If you're family, shouldn't you be together?" She asked. He chuckled.

"My brother graduated Atlas years before me, and joined the military. His loyalties belong to the state, rather than the people that make it up." He took a swig. "Fucking bastard twat."

"Woah, language." Jason chuckled again.

"Look, when you've been through as much shit as I have, then we'll talk. And Fall of Beacon don't count, even though it cost you an arm." Yang recoiled back a bit.

"How did you-"

"I was there, saw you with your arm gone. Bought enough time for your and the other teams to get out of there before Blade had us retreat."

"Blade?"

"My team leader. Blade, Gunner, and Ocean are their nicknames. Real names aren't used, since Gunner and Ocean are assholes most of the time."

"How?"

"Because of the nickname they gave me. Lil' Commander. Fuckin' sons of bitches." Jason muttered the last part, and Yang chuckled. "Fuck you."

"Why's _that_ your nickname, of all things?"

"They say my speeches are equal to a commander's, and while I'm the youngest by two weeks, Blade and I are the most mature of the four of us." They sat in silence for a few seconds. "So, what brings you here?"

"I'm looking for my sister, she said she's going to Mistral, but I don't know if she's made it there yet. There's one person that I know of that can take me right to her."

"Who the hell's that?"

"My mother, Raven Branwen."

"The Bird Bitch?" Yang let out a chuckle.

"Yep, you know her?"

"Nah, but her bandies have caused plenty of trouble for us, raiding our shipments from Mistral and such." He sighed. "What I'd give to give her a peice of my mind." He stood up and started towards the door. "Might want to start running, if you want my bro to believe our little story." As he walked out, Yang paid for the water and followed suit, running down the road to where she would meet up with the Major. As she ran off, Jason walked off in the opposite direction, walking through the forest a few feet off the road. After nearly a half hour of walking, a motor could be heard revving, and a yellow blur sped past him. Jason smiled.

"Good luck with your hunt, Yang. I hope we don't meet on the battlefield, as allies or enemies." He continued walking, on the lonely road.


	3. Flashbacks

_Five Years Ago . . ._

"Come on, you have to try harder!" The black-haired boy shouted, raising his long, thin rapier again to block a strike from his brother, who brought down his saber in an attempt to land a strike.

"Screw you, Sam!" The brown-haired boy yelled, delivering a roundhouse into Sam's side, causing the older brother to grunt and recoil, and allowing Jason to draw _Bowie_ and aim the barrel-pommel at his brother's head, winning the duel. Sam laughed as he stood up, sheathing his sword.

"See? You are going to be a good huntsman. The fact that I'm going to Atlas and you still managed to beat me proves it."

"Might also help that you're the worst on SWRD." Jason retorted, sheathing his own weapons as Sam punched his shoulder.

"Hey! I'm the leader, and the leader doesn't necessarily have to take part in the fighting. He has to command his team and make split-second decisions." They both laughed for a couple minutes, before a black-haired woman opened the door to the backyard they were dueling in, which was covered in snow.

"Sam! Jason! Winter and Weiss are here!" The older brother's head snapped towards the door, before turning back to his brother.

"Alright, we'll practice more later. I need to go." He started walking off.

"Have fun with your Ice Queen!" Jason shouted, which Sam replied with a quick middle finger before disappearing into the house. He chuckled before going to meet up with Weiss, his classmate and friend.

 _Two Years Later . . ._

"Who would like to test their skills against a Specialist." Several hands shot up around the bleachers as the teacher finished. Jason was amongst the students who were eager to prove their mettle.

"Really Jace?" Ocean asked, confused as why he would be so eager for this fight in particular. It wasn't like Specialist vs. Student fights were rare, but the boy's enthusiasm was far more than usual.

"Hey, if it's who I think it is, you'll see why." Jason said, as the teacher scanned the room.

"Your funeral." Gunner said, before getting a light slap by his girlfriend, Blade.

"You'll do fine, Jason. Just don't get too cocky." The wolf faunus said. Jason nodded.

"Jason Bower, step into the arena." The teacher announced, and Jason jumped over the barrier that separated the arena and the seating, a bolt-action rifle slung across his back, and _Bowie_ at his side. As he walked towards the center, a man wearing the familiar white uniform of an Atlesian Specialist, with a black beret to match his hair.

"Sammy! Good to see you again!" Jason shouted, spreading his arms out so they were almost as wide as his grin. Sam walked up to him.

"Good to see you too, Jason. I hope you weren't expecting an easy fight." He said, and Jason chuckled.

"I'd be very disappointed if you went easy on me." He joked, cracking his knuckles as the two walked to their sides of the arena. After reaching their corners, they drew their weapons, Sam with his rapier-pistol, _Ad Victoriam,_ and Jason with _Enfield_ , his bolt-action rifle/saber. The two combatants loaded their weapons, and after nodding to each other, the fight began.

Sam bolted at Jason, sword brought up to deflect his brother's onslaught of bullets, before Jason rolled out of the way, transforming _Enfield_ to it's saber form and parrying a follow-up jab from Sam. The two brothers traded parries, slashes, jabs, and bullets throughout the five minute fight, before they passed by each other one last time, slashing at each other, as the buzzer sounded. They looked up at the scoreboard, and both of their auras were in the red.

"What!" They both shouted, before laughing as they put away their weapons and shook hands.

"Nice job, Sam." Jason said as they shook.

"Yes. And let's not forget, we live together . . ."

"And die together, as _brothers_." After they finished shaking, Jason jumped back up to his seat, and Sam walked out of the arena, as the teacher continued with the pairings for duels.

 _The Fall of Beacon . . ._

"What do you mean!?" Jason yelled, glaring at his brother.

"I mean that we can't go back to the school, those are my orders." Sam said calmly.

" _You_ can't go. Remember, REBL ain't part of your damn military!" Jason said before he bolted to his team.

"No help?" Blade asked, putting down a Beowolf before it got within a hundred feet of them.

"No, we're on our own." He said.

"There's a few Bullheads close by, let's get them." Gunner suggested, and the rest of the team nodded, running to two bullheads, Gunner and Blade getting in one, and Ocean and Jason getting in another. They flew up to the landing pads, landing near a group of beaten, battered students, waiting for a ride. Ocean and Gunner sat in the pilot seats as Blade and Jason got off and walked towards the students, soldiers, and huntsmen.

"Is this everyone!?" Blade shouted. A black-haired and amber-eyed girl shook her head.

"Two of my teammates are at the tower!" She yelled, clutching her gut, keeping a wound closed. Blade nodded and turned to Jason.

"Get Gunner, and get these people on the Bullheads, I'll check out the tower."

"Alright, good luck." Jason said, running to Gunner's Bullhead and telling him the plan. They walked up to a couple of wounded students, and Jason knelt down to a blonde-haired girl, missing her right arm. "The hell happened to you?" He muttered, before picking her up fireman-style and carrying her to the Bullhead, as Gunner helped the black-haired girl to it.

Several minutes later, everyone was on the Bullheads, and Blade was running to them, followed by a dark grey-haired man, carrying a black-haired girl with red tips, and a white-haired girl behind him.

"Blade! Get your ass here now!" Jason yelled, rushing to pick up a fallen Atlesian soldier's handgun. He aimed and fired at a Beowolf that was sprinting towards his team leader, killing it as they passed him. After killing two more, he turned and ran to the Bullhead that Blade and the other two people boarded, and they took off.

 _Six months later . . ._

"Go go go!" Blade yelled, as another artillery shell exploded nearby. Team REBL ran across the war-torn field, as hundreds of other rebels made their own advances towards the Atlesian fortress. The huntsmen and huntresses used their weapons to propel themselves over the wall, and landed inside the fort, near the main gate.

"Ocean, you and I get the gate!" Jason yelled, before turning to Blade and Gunner. "And you two cover us!" He and Ocean sprinted to the gate, working the control panels to open it, while Blade and Gunner used their semblances to protect their friends and return fire. As the gate started to open, a figure clad in the uniform of an Atlesian specialist walked forward from the main tower, rapier drawn, deflecting everything Gunner threw at him.

"Specialist!" He yelled, and Jason turned around to see none other than his brother. Snarling, he stepped forward.

"I'll take him, the rest of you take the fort." Jason said, drawing _Enfield_ , changing it into it's saber form. "Look whose fucking back!" He yelled, walking towards Sam.

"I'm sorry, Jason. But I have my orders." The brothers raised their swords as the rest of REBL moved to clear out the fort.

"Damn shame, too." Jason and Sam charged at each other, their faces alit with the sparks from trading blows, and the occasional muzzle flash from _Ad Victoriam_. Nearly five minutes into the fight, Sam slashed at Jason, who brought up his sword to block, but as the blades clashed, _Enfield_ finally broke, after years of wear and tear.

"Shit!" Jason yelled, dropping the hilt and drawing _Bowie_ to parry another one of Sam's attacks, before firing a 'rocket blast' to jump out of the fight, firing all three shells to catch up with his team, who were helping to cover the retreating rebels, as Paladins strode out of the gates towards them.

 _Present Day_

Jason sighed, remembering how his relationship with his brother deteriorated so rapidly. As he walked through the forests of Mistral, he looked to the sky.

"Live together, die together, as brothers." He muttered under his breath, letting out a chuckle. "Buncha bullshit."


	4. Rebellious Traitors

Jason continued walking beside the road, hoping to find some sort of map or sign that could point him towards Mistral. Miles and miles passed, the only change in scenery were the slightly different trees, and the occasional animal or Grimm that passed by. Nearly an hour later, he arrived at a clearing, deciding to rest on a stump just on the edge of it. As he sat down, several twigs snapped. He bolted up and spun around, seeing several people in ragged clothes, some with guns raised at him, others with their knives and swords and axes. A man with dirty blonde hair, who Jason recognized as the drunk at the bar stepped forward, revolver in hand. All had bruises and cuts on them.

"Shit." He muttered, flicking the safety of _Bowie_ and his handgun off.

"Well, now isn't this funny?" The man continued to step forward. "The tables have turned quite a bit, haven't they? Now, I'd rather not kill another person today, so just hand over your stuff, and you can go on your way." Jason chuckled, and the man's faced changed from cocky-as-fuck to confused. "What's funny?"

"You bandits, fighting for yourselves, but not realizing that, while doing so, you'll end up destroying yourselves." They looked at each other, confused. "Raven Branwen, your leader right? She's a fucking idiot, I tell you."

"Don't speak of her that way."

"But she is. Cuts all of you off from the rest of the world, obviously cocky enough to think that you all will be able to hold off an attack from a much more numerous enemy. That's what lead to the Fall of Beacon and the Rebellion back up in Atlas. Our leaders got cocky, underestimated the enemy, and thousands died because of it. So, now, I'm going to give you a choice. Either join me, join the Rebellion, fight to keep your tribe alive for years to come, or attack me now, and get your asses put on the ground." The Rebel and the Bandits stood, not knowing what the other side was thinking. Weapons were drawn and cocked, ready to fire or strike. Several tense moments passed, the only sounds were from the wind and the uncertain murmuring from the bandits. Eventually, one-by-one, they lowered their weapons, and the blonde man looked around, a mixture of anger and confusion on his face. Jason Smiled.

"Wh-what are you idiots doing!? Kill him!" The man yelled.

"Looks like Sarge was right, I do have a way with words." Jason said. "Now come on, rebels, we have to teach your former leader a lesson." He motioned for one of the bandits to lead him. They marched towards the Tribe's camp, with the blonde left behind, confused. After several minutes of walking, they reached the front gate, and a crowd was gathered in the center of the camp, with the bandits ready to attack a giant, glowing, blue knight.

"Let's go!" Jason shouted to his new squad, drawing _Bowie_ and bolting towards the crowd, his men following. Several bandits turned and aimed their weapons at the newcomers, seeing their former brothers and sisters following someone other than their leader. As they neared, more and more bandits turned the new potential foe. Jason stopped, his men behind him, and raised his knife. As he prepared to engage, a lightning bolt struck down in front of the group, causing everyone to stop, recoil, and face the direction of the boom.

"Enough!" a woman yelled. Jason looked up, seeing the infamous Raven Branwen, arms crossed, facing the group. "If you people don't keep it together, this place will be crawling with Grimm."

"No fucking shit." Jason said, sheathing _Bowie_ and pushing through the crowd to see what the tension was about. As he reached the front, he saw two familiar faces. "The hell?" He muttered, as the crowd dispersed. _I'll give 'em a few minutes_. Jason thought, walking back to his men. "Alright, here's your first assignment: pack up your gear, and head to the north of the continent. Split up into squads and cover all major roads. My team, REBL, is going to meet me in Mistral, so you guys tell them that I'm waiting there. When you get a chance, call me." He handed the foremost rebel a slip of paper with his scroll number on it. "Understood?" They all gave a resounding "Yes", in one form or another. Jason nodded and turned around, leaving his new men to start their mission, to see Yang and his old friend: Weiss, hugging each other, with the big blue knight watching over the camp. He walked up to them, stopping about ten feet away, crossing his arms and letting out a chuckle.

"Well ain't this peachy." Jason said, startling the two teammates. They both immediately looked shocked as they turned to face him.

"Jason?" Weiss said first. He smiled.

"What's up, Icy?" Jason smirked, as Weiss's shocked expression turned into a pissed one, as she stomped over and punched his arm.

"I told you to stop calling me that!" She shouted, with him only laughing, before they pulled each other into a hug.

"Good to see you too." He roughly patted her on the back before breaking the embrace. "How've you been?"

"I've been, better." She said, her smile shrinking a bit.

"Yeah, I think we can all say that. What with the Fall of Beacon, the Rebellion nearly falling, things have really gone to shit." She looked at him, confused.

"The Rebellion?"

"Yeah, forces were decimated in the south, survivors fled. Standard battle for us."

"Wait, us?" He looked at her with a deadpanned expression.

"You know I'm with REBL, right? It's in the fucking name." Jason chuckled as Weiss tried to think of something to say.

"Wait, you two know each other?" Yang asked, saving Weiss from further embarrassment. Jason looked at her.

"Yep, since we went to combat school together, and our older siblings got together while they were at Atlas. We hung out plenty." He said, punching Weiss lightly on the arm.

"So, then, are you two . . .?" Yang pointed to the two of them.

"Oh no," Weiss started, "I mean, sure, we tried to be together for a bit, but we never actually developed feelings for each other." Jason rubbed his knuckles on top of her head, earning himself a glare.

"Yeah, pretty much siblings." He said, removing his hand and crossing his arms. "So, what _are_ you two doing here, exactly?"

"Well, my mom's waiting for us in her tent, so we better get going." Yang said, looking at Weiss.

"Then, I'll wait for you here." Jason motioned for the two to go, and as they left, he turned to see one of his men approaching him

"Everyone's packed and ready, permission to move out?" The girl asked.

"Granted, go." He said. The girl nodded and ran back to a tent. Jason walked over and sat down in front of the big tent the two girls went into, waiting for them to be done with, whatever they were doing.

Yang and Weiss walked out of the tent, to see Jason laying on the stairs, sleeping with a light snore. Weiss sighed before walking up and giving him a light kick on the head.

"Ah, fuck you Gun-" He stopped as he turned to see Weiss standing over him, before flipping her the bird. She laughed and crossed her arms.

"So, what are you doing here?" Weiss sat next to Jason.

"Running. Rebel forces were pushed back, me and my team agreed to meet up in Mistral, along with any other men we found along the way." He said, staring off in front of him, remembering the battle, before smiling and looking at the girls. "So, where are you off to now?"

"Wherever my mom takes us." Yang said. There were a few seconds of silence.

"What?" Jason simply asked "I hope you realize that sounded a lot better in your head than it did in real life."

"Well, my mom can take us to my uncle, who is supposed to be watching after my sister."

"And where is she?"

"Last I heard, she was in Mistral." Jason stood up.

"Then I might as well join you, Mistral's a long way, and I don't want to walk." Weiss rose next to him as he walked off the steps.

"Well, the more the merrier." Yang said, as they all waited for Raven to come out.


	5. Reunited

"What do you mean you didn't see her!?" Weiss yelled at Jason, who recoiled back a foot.

"Hey, I was sleeping while you three were talking about who-knows-what!" He yelled back, as Yang just watched.

"Yang shot a table! How were you sleeping!?"

"You did what!?" Jason turned to Yang, utterly confused at what he just heard. She just shrugged, clearly amused by the current situation. He sighed. "So, when are we going to Mistral?"

"Well, as soon as I can find my mom, we can get her to open a portal to my uncle." Yang said, looking around.

"Great, where the hell is she?" He asked, as a raven let out it's cry and flew overhead. Yang seemed to focus on it. "Oh look, there she is!" Jason joked, as Weiss slightly struggled to contain a sudden laugh.

"I've, seen that bird before." Yang said, focusing her gaze on it, as Jason looked at her, absolutely dumbfounded..

"Maybe it belongs to your mom?" Weiss suggested. Jason shook his head and took his canteen from his belt, opening it and taking a long drink from it. As the three watched the raven expertly weave it's way through trees, it flew behind a tree, only for Raven to appear and land in front of them. Jason immediately spit out the mouthful of water he was about to swallow and lowered his canteen.

"The fuck was that?" He asked, recapping the canteen and putting it on his belt. As he looked back up, he saw that he spit all over Raven, who wasn't happy.

"So, who's this?" She asked coldly, pointing at Jason. Before Weiss or Yang could say anything, he stepped forward.

"Brevet Sergeant Jason Bower, probably the highest ranking man in the Rebellion up north." They stared each other down, as the two huntresses simply looked back and forth between the two. "Now, what the hell was that?"

"Well," Raven started, putting a hand on her sword, "You could ask me, or . . ." As she finished the sentence, she drew her sword and swung it to the side, opening a red portal. Yang and Weiss looked on in shock.

"You're just, letting us go?" Yang asked, and Raven nodded in response.

"You could ask your uncle, and get thrown into something bigger than any of us. Or, you could stay with me, and I'll tell you everything you need to know." Before she finished, Jason was already walking towards the portal.

"All due respect, which isn't much, I made a promise to my people that I'd return to fight again. I bet you know all about that, don't you?" As he finished the sentence, he stepped through the portal. For a few moments, everything was blood red, before he stepped out, stumbling slightly as he set foot in Mistral. "That, is disorienting." He said, regaining his balance and looking around. A man with slick, black hair stood at the edge of the balcony Jason stood on, staring intently at him.

"Hey, I recognize you." The man said, taking a few steps toward Jason. "You're the kid from Beacon."

"Oh, that's where I recognize you from." Jason replies, stepping forward and reaching his hand out. "Jason Bower."

"Qrow Branwen, now mind telling me what you're doing here?" Qrow asked, taking the handshake.

"Well, Yang should be coming through any moment now." Qrow looked at him, confused. As Jason stepped out of the way, a familiar yellow motorcycle came through. Qrow chuckled as he saw who rode it.

 _One hour later . . ._

Jason jumped down from the roof of a house, and looked at it's address.

"Well, unless Qrow is an utter dick, this is the place." He said, walking up to the double doors and opening the right side door, walking in. The first sight to greet him was Weiss, Yang, and the black-haired girl Qrow was carrying at Beacon in a group hug, glad to see each other based on their body language. Behind them, stood three more people, a tall, blonde-haired man, a black-haired man who wore a pink streak in his hair, and a ginger girl who wore a pink skirt. To the left was a brown-haired boy, smiling at the three girls hugging. And on the left side of the doors, Qrow stood, seeming to be the only one that noticed Jason's entrance. Jason walked over, facing the current main attraction as he reached Qrow.

"Anyone?" Qrow asked, still watching his nieces.

"Far as I can tell, no. But, then again, I think that some of them do have semblances that make them invisible, so the fuck do I know?" Qrow chuckled at the joke, still smiling from the warm reunion. Jason looked at him. "So, anyone gonna introduce me, or do I have to do everything myself?"

"Weiss." Qrow said, gaining attention from everyone. "Mind introducing your friend here?" He motions to Jason, as all eyes set on the rebel.

"Oh, right." She runs over and stands by Jason, facing her friends. "This is Jason."

"Heya." He said, giving a short, two-fingered salute.

"We went to combat school together, and he helped evacuate people from Beacon."

"Nice to meet you." The black-haired girl said, stepping forward. "I'm Ruby, and this is Yang, my sister, Jaune, Ren, Nora, and Oscar." She pointed to each of them, who each gave a short little greeting as they were mentioned. Jason nodded, getting a good look at everyone in the room.

"Good to meet you all at last." He said. They all stood for a few moments in awkward silence, eyes darting around, waiting for someone to say something. "Great fuckin' talk, let's have it again sometime." Everyone laughed or chuckled at his joke.

"Well, we're almost done with making dinner, if you'd like to join us?" Ruby offered. Jason shrugged.

"Sure, why not. Been a while since I ate." Weiss looked at him, her head tilted.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"Hey, rebels, while they're absolute badasses, we're not exactly the Atlas Military. Hard enough to get us fed every other day." Everyone stared at him for a few seconds, confused. "Whatever, let's eat, I'll explain later."

 _Minutes later . . ._

All seven of the huntsmen and huntresses sat around the table, talking over each other, telling stories about their travels. Obviously, most of the attention was directed towards the head of the table, all curious about the newcomer and his stories, laughing as he told the ones that would surely get him killed by his teammates.

"How did he get his arm stuck in a tree!?" Yang asked while laughing, looking at Jason, as the others (besides Ren) tried to control their laughter.

"Hey, I don't even know how he does half that stuff. It took me and Blade a half hour of chopping, while Ocean covered us from Grimm, to get him out. We've never let him live that down." As the meal progressed, Weiss showed off an evolved form of her semblance, while Yang revealed her robotic arm to the group, even 'beating' Nora in an arm wrestling contest. After they finished, Jason and Jaune carried the dishes back to the kitchen.

"I can't believe we ate all of that." Jaune moaned.

"Better than the rebel rations, that's for sure." Jason commented.

"Be careful, Vomit Boy." Yang taunted.

"Oh, we're doing nicknames again. Great." He groaned as the two put the dishes in the sink. Jason chuckled. "What's so funny?"

"Just getting reminded of everything me and my team would do before, well, everything." Jason said.

"Yeah . . ." Jaune sighed. "A lot has happened. Beacon fell, we made it here . . ."

"Atlas went to shit, I nearly fought a whole tribe, lots of shit." They chucled, before Jaune looked down in sadness. Jason walked up and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Keep your chin up, bud. We'll get through this. Remember, this is a tunnel, not a cave. There's light at the end, we've just gotta keep walking." Jaune looked at Jason and, after a moment of silence, nodded. "Now, let's get back to our friends." The two walked back to the dining room, where Ren was in the middle of giving an inspirational speech.

 _Later . . ._

Everyone either sat or stood in the living room, having just been told about Salem, the Maidens, and everything in between, and Yang getting Ozpin to not hide anything. After a few moments of silence, Jason let out a chuckle.

"Well, makes a lot more sense now." He said, causing everyone to look at him.

"What do you mean, kid?" Qrow asked. Jason stepped forward, away from the wall he was leaning on.

"Our spies in the Atlas military reported two people that went by the codenames 'Salem' and 'Winter Maiden'. At the time, we knew Salem was the figure Jacques Schnee reported to, but we had no idea who she was, and our theory of the Winter Maiden was that she was a military experiment that escaped a lab, hence why the military's hunting her down. Now, we know that this is bigger than we could have ever fucking imagined."

"What does Mr. Schnee have to do with this?" Ozpin, who had taken over Oscar's body, asked.

"He staged a coup with General Ironwood, and now he has total rule over Atlas. Put Ironwood in prison to secure his power, I guess." Jason answered, as Ozpin lowered his head for a moment, before looking back up at Jason.

"Then that is where we go next. We cannot let the Winter Maiden or the Relic of Creation fall into Salem's hands."

"Agreed," Qrow started, "But how will we find her? It's not like she'll be out in the open, and since the Rebellion fell, we can't exactly get much intel."

"Objection, the Rebellion hasn't fallen. Just the command." Jason said. "The rest of my team will, hopefully, be in Mistral soon enough, with some Branwen bandits that I brought to my side. And I have no doubt that our spies are still in place up there, we just need a message to them."

"Then we'll wait for the rest of REBL to arrive, and then we will make our plan." Ozpin stood, holding his cane. "Until then, we will continue to attempt to make headway with the Council."

"And in the meantime?" Yang asked.

"Take this time to rest, I have no doubt we have trouble coming." Everyone nodded, and went about their own business. Jason went up to the roof, to get some fresh air, and to watch for anyone that might have followed him. As he leaned on the edge, footsteps could be heard behind him. He turned his head, to see Yang walking up to him.

"Hey there." He said, looking forward again.

"Hey." She said, walking up to the right side of him, staring at the city. "Nice night, isn't it?"

"I guess." Jason muttered, focused on scanning the skyline. Both sat in silence for a few seconds.

"What's it like? The Rebellion?" Yang asked.

"It's hell. You think Beacon was bad, you haven't seen anything yet. Barely any food, always low on ammo, walking nearly forty miles a day with thirty pounds of gear on your back, looking over it to make sure you're not next in the sights of the sniper that's been picking your friends off."

"But, all for something greater, right?" Jason sighed.

"Yeah, despite everything, we push on, trying to restore the Council up there."

"Why restore it? Don't you want to overthrow it, replace it with something better?"

"No. Despite it's flaws, the Council of Atlas worked. Certainly better than what we've got now. On top of that, no one in the High Command of the Rebels knows a damn thing about politics and governing, at least that's what Sarge said." They continued the silence.

"Well, I'll be going to bed now. Good night." She turned and went back into the house.

"Night." Jason said, still looking out to the night sky. Minutes later, he went to the room he was staying in to call it a night.


	6. Revelations

Jason walked a few steps behind the group, as they approached Haven Academy. On instinct, he observed the roof and surrounding foliage, scanning for a possible ambush.

 _Nothing in the bushes, snipers in the trees, a few guys on the roof. Shit._ He jogged up to Qrow.

"Yeah, kid?" The huntsman asked, still looking forward.

"Ambush. People on the roof and in the trees. At least a dozen total."

"Yeah, I noticed."

"Which means we're walking into a trap."

"True."

"Well that's too bad, for them." Both of them smiled.

"I like you, kid." Qrow said, as the group approached the giant double doors. Jason flicked the safeties off _Bowie_ and his handgun. Qrow looked to the group, getting a nod from everyone, before turning and opening the doors. They walked inside.

"Welcome." Lionheart said, as the group approached the center of the massive room. "There, seem to be more of you than last time." The latter he said somewhat hesitantly.

"So, what's with the council?" Qrow asked.

"Why, did you bring your weapons?" The lion was clearly nervous.

"The fuck were you expecting?" Jason blurted. "Daisies and roses? We're goddamned huntsmen, we have to be ready to fight."

"You ok, Leo?" Qrow said, concerned.

"O-of course. It's just, that-"

"What're you hiding?" Jason interrupted. All eyes turned to him, except Yang's.

"What are you accusing me of?"

"Really? Stuttering, fidgeting, heck, even your eyes give it away. Cut the bullshit, what's going on." Jason stepped forward, a hand on _Bowie_. Leo sighed.

"Truthfully, I would've hoped you would have made this easier on yourselves." He said, a hint of regret in his voice.

"Mom?" Yang muttered, causing Qrow to look up into the rafters. Moments later, he drew his weapon and fired a blast at the raven that watched over them, causing it to fly down, and transform behind Leo, to reveal Raven.

"Great, the asshole's here." Jason announced.

"What are you doing here!?" Qrow was pissed.

"I could ask you the same thing." She took off her helmet and began walking down the stairs. You've been scheming, little brother. Planning to attack your own sister."

"Leo, what have you done?" Qrow turned to Leo, who was stricken with guilt.

"I-I-"

"He betray you, simple as that." Jason said, starting to back up. "Told you this was a trap, I'll make sure we have a way-" As he turned, the doors were shut by a large man.

"No one's getting in," The man started, "And no one gets out."

"Shit." Jason muttered, turning back to face Raven. "So, now what?" He asked the tribe leader. "You gonna get your ass handed to you by a couple kids and your little bro?"

"You have the Spring Maiden." Qrow stated.

"I do." Raven replied.

"Then hand her over so we can stop Salem, together!"

"All that spying for Ozpin, and you still haven't learned. There is no stopping Salem."

"You're wrong." Ruby spoke up. "We've done things most people would call 'impossible', and that's only because we didn't do it alone. We had people to teach us, people to help us, we had each other. Work with us." She stepped forward, reaching her hand out. "At least we'll have a better chance if we work together. Please" A few seconds of silence passed.

"You sound just like your mother." Raven said at last, before putting a hand on her sword. She swung it, opening a portal.

"Shit, duck!" Jason yelled, shoulder checking Ruby out of the way, just in time to get struck square in the chest by a fireball. "Ah, fuck!" He shouted, flying and landing square on his back. A grey aura flickered and broke around him.

"Jason!" Yang shouted, watching as he landed. As Jason stood up, seeing his aura break, several people walked through the portal. He looked up, seeing the people, but fixing his eyes on one person in particular.

"Hello, brother." Sam said, standing straight, arms behind his back.

"Sam?" Weiss questioned.

"You're with _them_!?" Jason shouted, marching back up towards the group.

"You were always the fool, Jason. I didn't have a choice."

"Sure you did, you had a choice when you chose to fight for that bastard of a Schnee, when I chose to fight for those _you_ swore to protect when you signed up for the military."

"I was ordered to."

"I don't give a damn!" At this point, Jason was shouting. "I disobeyed your orders back at Beacon, that's why these people are still here," He motioned to his friends, all looking at him, "And then again when REBL sided with the Rebellion. You had choices, and you chose wrong." Nearly ten seconds of silence passed, the air tense with anticipation of the inevitable. All eyes were on the brothers.

"Then, I guess we have no choice." Sam said, placing a hand on his rapier.

"I guess so." Jason replied, putting a hand on _Bowie_. They drew their weapons, Sam pointing _Ad Victoriam_ at Jason, and Jason holding _Bowie_ backhanded, the edge of the blade facing his brother.

"Hold it!" Qrow ordered, as the rest of Jason's allies drew their weapons, ready for combat. Sam's entourage readied their weapons as well. Again, the air stood still with anticipation, as the two parties prepared for battle, the only sound being the combine breathing of the huntsmen, huntresses, specialists, and villians in the grand hall. In the midst of the silence, Jason chuckled.

"Well, here we go again, Sam." Then, a clang of metal as the two brothers dashed at each other and locked blades. The battle had begun.

Clanging rang throughout the hall, as sparks flew from the clashing of blades and bullets. Jason pushed back from Sam and drew his handgun with his left hand, firing a few rounds, all of which were effortly deflected, before raising _Bowie_ to block an attack from his brother. Sam drew his blade back and jabbed it at Jason, who parried it before slashing at him several times, then backing off, firing at Sam as he retreated. He blocked every bullet, before dashing at Jason and jabbing several times at him, and firing the built-in gun, which barely missed. After the barrage of blade and bullets, Jason smacked Sam's arm away, before jumping off of him and unloading his gun on his brother, causing a white aura to break around him. Jason holstered his pistol as he landed with a roll, looking up with a smirk. Sam recovered, scowling, and brought his blade up, ready to continue the duel.

"Still got it." Jason muttered to himself, standing and bringing _Bowie_ up, ready to defend against another attack. Sam reloaded _Ad Victoriam_ , before leveling the blade at Jason.

"This is your last chance," Sam said as the fight continued around them, "Either fall alongside your allies, or join me, and we can rule Atlas together, please." He muttered the last word, and Jason chuckled.

"I'd rather lose half my body than become a dictator." Sam sighed, closing his eyes and lowering his head slightly.

"So be it." He looked up, and fired a barrage of bullets at Jason, who skillfully deflected them, slowly retreating while Sam advanced, his steps growing quicker and quicker with each shot. Seconds later, Sam parried an attack from Jason, before slashing at his face. Jason recoiled, grabbing his left eye, blood dripping down from the gash. He moved his hand, to see it crimson, as his eye stung from the blood seeping through the now-cut eyelid. With his good eye, he looked at Sam, and while his face stayed cold, his eyes pleaded Jason to surrender.

"NOOOOOOO!" Jaune screamed, causing the dueling brothers to turn. Jason's jaw dropped, seeing a red spear in Weiss's torso. Moments later, the spear disintegrated, and she fell over. Jason gritted his teeth and sprinted forward, firing _Bowie_ to jump over Sam. Both him and Jaune reached Weiss's unconscious body at the same time, with Jaune grabbing her hand. "No, please don't go, not again." He said. Jason put a hand on Weiss's shoulder, before Jaune began applying pressure to the wound.

"Damnit, Weiss." Jason muttered, searching himself for any medical supplies, only to find none. Seconds later, a gold aura enveloped both Jaune and Weiss. Jason looked up, to see the blonde transferring his aura to her, causing the wound to heal. He reached over and put a hand on Jaune's shoulder, causing him to look up. "Keep it up, kid. I'll cover you." Jason stood up and walked over to _Myrtenaster_ , picking it up. He twirled it around a bit, getting used to the weight again, before facing towards the woman who had thrown the spear. She, along with Raven and a bandit, were on a lift, already going down to the Vault. Before he could move to stop them, Sam stepped in front of him. They stood off for several seconds, weapons at the ready. Soon, Jason sighed, his eyelid still bleeding, the crimson liquid dripping down his left cheek.

Jason spun the cylinder of _Myrtenaster_ , so that the vial of fire dust was chambered. He activated it, causing the thin blade to become engulfed in flame. Sam raised his sword, as Jason did the same. After a few moments passed, Sam dashed at Jason, who parried strike after strike from his brother, the duel now moving much faster than before. Jason began backing up, blocking and parrying away jabs and slashes, as Sam gave chase, forcing Jason to retreat up the stairs, onto the balcony overlooking the hall. As they reached it, Jason jumped back, getting some space between him and Sam. Leo ran up the stairs, and through the double doors leading to the rest of the academy.

"Oh no you don't!" Jason shouted, giving chase to Leo, sprinting after him through the halls of Haven. Before Sam could give chase, Nora and Ren jumped in front of him, ready to fight.

Soon, Leo and Jason burst into the Headmaster's office. After catching his breath, Leo turned, to see Jason's wounded eyelid, with blood coating his cheek and jaw.

"You should have listened to your brother, young man." He said after some silence. "Please, just turn around, and go home."

"I don't have a home anymore, so there's no reason for me to turn back." Jason replied, as the fire dust in _Myrtenaster_ ran out, and the glow from the blade faded, darkening the room. "If people don't have anything to lose, they won't give up."

"Then why fight? Why not run away, if there's nothing to live for." Jason thought for a moment.

"Because rebels, like me, fight for people that have stuff to lose. For people that have a need for freedom, for those who haven't lost everything yet, and for the people that will be here after us. That is what we fight for." They stood in silence again.

"In that case, I'm sorry." Leo said finally, closing his eyes and looking down.

"The fuck do you mean by th-ARG!" Jason screamed, as several red ribbons slashed through his left shoulder, cutting off his arm. He collapsed, seeing the ribbons move forward, towards Leo. Then, everything went dark.


	7. A Team's Reunion

As RWBY broke their reunion, three people rushed in.

"Weiss!" The blue-haired, green-eyed girl, with two smgs strapped to her back, shouted, running up to the heiress.

"Lilith!" Weiss greeted back, as they ran to each other, embracing in a hug. "It's good to see you again, what are you doing here?"

"We came down to find Jason, and ended up meeting Blake. She brought us here, to Mistral." Lilith said, as the other two walked up, the male carrying a large maul, and the female carrying a katana and revolver.

"So, ya know each other?" The blonde-haired, blue-eyed man asked, resting the maul on his shoulder.

"Yes! Jason, her, and I met in combat school back in Atlas. Then, we got separated when she went to Beacon." Lilith replied, letting go of Weiss.

"So," Weiss started, "I guess you are Rachel and Edward, then?"

"Yep, that we are. Call me Gunner." He said, giving a two-fingered salute. "And then Blade, and Ocean." Gunner pointed to the girls as he said the nicknames.

"Great," Blade, a black-haired, grey-eyed wolf faunus, said while stepping forward, "Now, do you know where Jason is?"

"Um, I saw him go after Headmaster Lionheart after he went to his office." Ruby said.

"I'll go check on him." Yang offered, before running up the stairs.

"As will I." Gunner joined Yang as she reached the top. They ran through the green and brown halls of Heaven, before reaching the doors to the Headmaster's office.

"It's locked." Yang said, trying to open the door. Gunner grabbed his maul with two hands, taking a few steps forward.

"Stand back." He ordered, and Yang complied. After taking a better stance, he brought the maul down, breaking open both doors in one swing. He recovered, and transformed the maul into it's minigun form, ready for a fight. Instead, the sight was much worse.

Closer to the door was the body of Leo Lionheart, lying in a pool of his own blood, which poured out of a puncture that went straight through his neck. Beyond him, to the right, was Jason, his left arm severed from his body.

"Jason!" Gunner shouted, dashing over to his body. Yang rushed over, checking for a pulse.

"He's alive, barely." She looked up at Gunner. "Do you have any bandages?"

"Yeah, here." He put his gun down and took out a medkit and handed it to Yang. "I'll watch the door, make sure no one else comes." Picking up his gun, he rushed to the door, surveying the hall for any enemies. Meanwhile, Yang began patching up Jason's shoulder, turning him over after it was bandaged. She bandaged up his face, which was nearly completely covered in blood at this point. After he was bandaged, she picked him up, careful not to touch his wounds, and sprinted towards the door.

"Come on, we need to get him to a hospital." She said. Gunner modded, and followed her back to the grand hall where the fight had just taken place. Nearly everyone gasped, seeing what was left of Jason.

"What happened?" Blade demanded.

"Don't know, where's the closest hospital?" Gunner replied, rushing down the stairs after Yang. As they reached the bottom, several Mistral police came in.

"We need an ambulance!" Yang shouted to the officers. One of them nodded and took out a scroll. After a few seconds, he got off.

"There will be one here in a few minutes, hold tight." The officer said, turning to his men to give orders. Yang laid Jason against a wall, looking at where his arm should be.

"Any idea what happened?" Qrow asked, walking up behind her.

"No, we just found him like this, and Leo was dead." Qrow sighed, before putting a hand on Yang's shoulder. Minutes later, paramedics came and took him to a hospital, while the rest of the group went to the house that they were originally staying in.

 _Days later. . ._

With a groan, Jason woke up, grabbing his forehead to try to sooth his headache, only to feel a bandage across it. He opened his good eye, to find himself in a clean, white room, with an I.V. in his arm. Well, the one that was left anyways. Machines let out electronic blips as they measured his vitals. His clothes were replaced with a hospital gown, and there were several bandages on his shoulder and head. Using his right arm to sit up, he found Yang sleeping in an armchair beside the bed he lay in. On a table next to the door, his weapons. And through the window, he could see that it was late in the night. He reached to his left shoulder, touching the bandages that covered the wound.

"Arg." He muttered, flinching from the pain, before moving up and feeling the bandages covering his eye. Again, there was pain from the stitched wound. He reached over and shook Yang. Her eyes fluttered open.

"Hm, what?" She muttered, looking over to Jason, before her eyes widened, and she stood up and put a hand on his shoulder. "Are you ok?"

"Yeah, I'll live." He said. "Already miss the arm though."

"What happened in there?" Her voice pleaded, concerned. Jason sighed.

"Well, I chased Leo in there and confronted him. Then some, ribbons, cut my arm clean off. Don't know after that. Where is Leo, anyways?"

"He's dead, stabbed straight through the neck." There was a moment of silence as Jason leaned against the headboard of the hospital bed. "I'm sorry." Yang finally said.

"What for? It's one of my mistakes, and like the rest, it won't keep me out of a fight."

"Yes, but we should have gone with you to catch Leo, not stay and fight the rest of them."

"Did we win?" He asked at last.

"Yes." Yang said, after a few seconds. "Cinder's dead, and Uncle Qrow has the Relic."

"Then an arm and an eye's a fair price to pay, right?"

"What do you mean?"

"Yang, in my years as a huntsman and rebel, I've learned that nothing's free. To gain something, something else must be lost. We achieved our goal, at the cost of my left arm and eye. Fairly cheap, considering someone died, don't you think? Well, two people." Again, there was silence. "So, where's the rest of the group?"

"They should be coming by shortly. Ocean told me that she's been working-"

"Wait, Ocean? My team's here?" Jason interrupted.

"Yes, they got here just after the battle. Gunner and I found you in the headmaster's office." As she finished, the door opened, to reveal the other three members of REBL.

"Jason!" Ocean shouted, dropping the box she was carrying and dashing to him, hugging him. Gunner caught the box before it hit the ground and walked over, with Blade following.

"Good to see ya up, bud." Gunner said, putting the box by Jason's weapons.

"Good to see all of you too. How long have I been out?" Jason inquired, smiling at his team.

"Nearly three days. What happened?" Blade asked, a slight hint of concern in her voice.

"Well, glad to see nothing's changed. And I believe that my arm got chopped off, that's what happened."

"No kidding, Commander, you-" Jason pointed at Gunner, cutting him off.

"Use that damn name one more time, and I won't be the only one without an arm on this team." Everyone else in the room laughed and chuckled. "As to what happened, I think Salem, queen of the Grimm, had one of her minions try to off me."

"Yeah, Ozpin and Qrow told us about all of that when we got to the house." Blade said. Jason nodded, looking over to the box Ocean dropped.

"So, what's in the box?" All eyes turned to Ocean, as she got off of Jason.

"Your new arm!" She said excitedly, rushing over and grabbing it.

"Wait, what?" Jason and Yang exclaimed at once, as Ocean brought it to the bed.

"Here!" She opened it, and inside it was a robotic arm, painted matte grey and black. It was flawless, as far as Jason could tell.

"You made this?" He looked at Ocean, who had a massive grin on her face.

"Aye, she's been working on this lil' thing nonstop for two days now. Cost quite a bit, but I think it's worth it." Gunner said, placing a hand on Jason's good shoulder.

"Hurry up and try it on!" She begged, causing everyone else to laugh at her antics.

"Alright, alright. Let's get this over with." Jason said, starting to take the bandages off with Yang and Blade's help.

 _One hour later . . ._

"This is, weird." Jason stated, moving his new arm as he walked down the street in his new outfit, a brown leather jacket with a black t-shirt underneath, with grey cargo pants and leather combat boots, and an eyepatch over his left eye. _Bowie_ is on his right side, and his pistol on his left.

"Yeah, you'll feel like that for a while." Yang said, walking beside him. Ever since the arm had been put on, she had been giving him pointers on getting used to it. As they walked, Ocean couldn't contain her giggles, causing Jason to turn and walk backwards.

"Alright, Ocean, what did you do with the arm?" He asked, and Ocean smiled.

"Just, try making a finger gun." She said. Jason rolled his eyes, and did so. His middle and index fingers, as well as his thumb, turned into a small handgun. Ocean burst out laughing, and soon the rest of REBL did as well.

"Of course you did." Jason just said, switching his hand back and facing forward again as they reached the house. Yang opened the door for REBL, and they entered.


	8. Practice

Jason grunted as Weiss jabbed at him again with her rapier, deflecting it with his metal arm. He slashed with _Bowie_ , causing Weiss to jump back, before he transformed his hand to a gun and fired off a few shots. She blocked each of them, then used a glyph to encase Jason's legs in ice, before dashing towards him. He blocked and parried each of her blows as she jumped over him, before she used fire dust to light her blade on fire. She slashed towards Jason, who shot a round from his knife/shotgun at the ice, breaking it, before jumping over the wave of fire and slashing several times at Weiss, who deflected each blow. Soon, he kicked Weiss in the stomach, before putting his finger gun to her head.

"And that, is how it's done." He said, transforming his hand back. He holstered _Bowie_ and put a hand on Weiss's shoulder. "You good?" He asked, and she looked up.

"Yeah, just got the wind knocked out of me, that's all." She replied. Jason helped her to the sidelines of the dojo, where RWBY, JNR, and REBL now stood, watching the duel.

"That was awesome!" Ruby shouted, running up to the two. "Where did you learn to fight like that!?" She pointed to Jason.

"My brother taught me how to use a sword, but I had to improvise when learning how to use _Bowie_ , since a knife's not exactly the best for a proper duel." He shifted his eyepatch, so it was resting comfortably over his healing eyelid, the wound scabbed over, creating a red mark an inch above and two below his eye. The stitches were still there, creating a sort of railway-looking mark on his forehead.

"How's the arm holding up?" Ocean asked, as the rest of REBL approached. Jason mimed stretching it out.

"It's working nicely. Thanks for doing it again, I owe you." He said, but Ocean shook her head and hands.

"No no no, you've saved me plenty of times, it's the least I could do." She said, still shaking her head, as everyone else in the room laughed.

"Glad to see some things never change." Jason said, ruffling her sea blue hair. He looked to Blade and Gunner. "Any word from Sarge, or the other rebels?"

"Not a damn thing." Gunner replied.

"Damn it." Jason muttered. "Alright, we'll keep looking. Can't give up just yet." He walked over and sat a bench, with Weiss joining him, taking a drink of water. She offered him a drink, and he took it, as Gunner and Nora took their places opposite each other, ready for their duel. As the two hammer wielders began clashing, Yang walked over and sat by Jason.

"So, how long have you been a rebel?" She asked.

"Better part of a year now, why you asking?" He replied, looking at the brawler.

"Just curious, since I haven't heard of any Atlas rebellion before I met you."

"Yeah, Weiss's old man lead a coup to take power from the council, and now we know he works for Salem, and has my brother's support. As far as we know, even General Ironwood has been imprisoned for speaking against him. Also keeps news from getting out of the kingdom."

"Geez, it's that bad, is it?" She cringed. Jason sighed.

"Yeah, hell, I doubt we'll make it back to Atlas alive." He said, pinching the bridge of his nose and closing his eye, as Nora and Gunner finished their duel. A draw.

"Well, I bet I can pull a few strings to get your team there, and maybe even to the capital." Weiss interjected, causing Jason to jerk his head towards her.

"You can do that?" He asked, raising his right brow.

"Well, I am the daughter of the current ruler of Atlas, aren't I?" She said, causing Jason to smile.

"Welp, we have that settled now. All we need is a plan for when we're up there." Blade looks at the sheet she has in her hands, then up to Jason.

"Jason, Yang. You're up." She said. The two looked at each other.

"Let's do this." Jason said, standing up and reloading _Bowie_ , before drawing it. Yang nodded, activating _Ember Celica_ and walking to the opposite side of the ring. They stared at each other for a few seconds, both smiling at the chance to finally duel. Soon Blade gave the signal, and Yang used her gauntlets to jump at Jason, who smacked her away with his arm. She landed a few feet away, arms raised as Jason swung his knife, sparks flying as the blade and arm clashed with a clang. Yang punched at him, getting a quick jab on his head before he delivered a roundhouse to her side. They jumped back, taking some time to regain their bearings. After catching her breath, Yang began firing round after round at Jason, who used _Bowie_ to block what he could, and dodged the rest, sprinting towards her. As he closed in, he transformed his hand into it's handgun form and fired at Yang, causing her to jump back to dodge the bullets. Jason charged, slashing his knife at her, pushing her slowly towards the wall as she blocked, dodged, and punched at him. Soon, her back hit the wall, and Jason put his left arm to her neck, pinning her there. He smirked.

"Don't let your guard down for a second, alright?" Jason said, holding her against the wall. As Yang was about to respond, a click was heard from the sidelines. They both turned, to see Ocean showing a picture to Nora, both giggling. "Oh you ass!" Jason shouted, letting Yang go and rushing towards Ocean, who sprinted towards the door. As they left, Blade and Gunner sighed, as Nora laughed, and everyone else was left confused.

"What just happened?" Ruby asked.

"Ocean took a picture of them at the end there. Probably to tease Jason with later." Gunner replied, chuckling.

Meanwhile, Jason was busy chasing Ocean though the house, which eventually lead them onto the streets of Mistral. They reached the market, with Ocean using her acrobatics to jump and flip through the stalls, and Jason using his agility to climb onto the roofs to chase after her. After several minutes, Ocean was caught in an open stretch of street, and Jason saw the opportunity. He jumped down towards her, tackling her. They rolled across the ground, Ocean dropping her scroll. Jason ran over and grabbed it, swiftly opening and deleting the picture with a sigh.

"Nooo!" Ocean yelled, jumping and snatching her scroll back. She checked it, and slumped over seeing that the image was no more.

"That's what you get, asshat." Jason chuckled, before giving her a pat on the back.

"Aww, but you two looked so cute!" She said, smiling.

"Ah, fuck off." Ocean chuckled, before they began heading back to the house. As they walked, Jason sighed, looking up at the sky.

"What's wrong?" Ocean asked.

"This war, the rebellion. How long until it all comes crashing down?" He looked up into the baby blue sky, in thought.

"It _won't_ , Jason, we'll make sure of it." Ocean said, putting a hand on her partner's shoulder. He looked at her.

"How do you know?" She chuckled.

"As you said, we can't lose this fight. For everyone back home." Jason smiled.

"Turning my own words against me?" He sighed, before looking forward again. "Alright, let's see this through." They arrived at the house, and Jason opened the door for them both.


	9. Rebuilding

"What's he doing, he's taken hours longer than he said?" Blade asked, and everyone just shrugged, wondering where Jason was, and what he was doing. They had agreed to meet at Haven in the morning to leave, but it was now noon, and no sign of Jason, who hadn't left the academy's workshop in days.

"Want me to go in?" Weiss offered, as the doors to the academy opened.

"No need." Jason said, holding his new weapon: a lever action rifle, the word ' _Winchester_ ' engraved on the stock. Everyone stared at it for a few moments, before Ruby let out a squeal, dashing over to look at the weapon.

"Woahthat'ssocool!Whatdoesitdo!?" She shouted too fast for anyone to comprehend.

"What?" Jason joked.

"Oh, sorry." Ruby backed off, a bit sheepishly. "What does it do?"

"Well, I used the handgun I was using before for the firing mechanism, except I replaced the automatic acton with a lever action. Oh, and see this switch?" He pointed to a switch on the left side of the rifle. Ruby nodded. Jason smirked, before flipping it and throwing the lever, causing the rifle to near-instantly transform into a saber. He chuckled as Ruby looked in awe. He transformed it back and put it in the sheath that was located on his back. They walked back to the main group.

"So, are we ready to head out now?" Yang asked. Jason gave a nod in response.

"Good, I have an airship that can take us to Atlas waiting for us." Weiss said, and the three teams, as well as Qrow and Oscar set off to their next goal.

 _Meanwhile, in the Schnee Dust Company HQ . . ._

Samuel Bower marched down the hall. He thought about what had happened, and what Salem had told him of his brother's death. Of course, he could push past this, as he had done with his parents years ago. But, this felt, different. Something kept nagging at him, the guilt wouldn't go away.

He shrug the feeling off, best he could, and entered Jacque Schnee's office. The dictator looked up from his desk, expectant of a report.

"It is done, Sir." Sam said, closing the door. "My brother is no more."

"Good." The Tyrant said, standing up. "And what of the Relic?"

"Cinder was killed while attempting to retrieve it, betrayed by Raven Branwen."

"I told Salem that bringing her along was a bad idea. Now, we have no maidens on our side, and the relic is in the hands of our enemy." Jacque sighed, before looking out the massive window, gazing upon the city before him. "Any updates on the Winter maiden?"

"Your daughter is still searching, but we are close. We suspect that she has taken refuge in a village in the mountains."

"Take Winter, and go there then. If they refuse to give her up, raze the city to the ground, make an example." Sam took a slight step back.

"Sir?"

"You heard me. And you know what will happen if we fail Salem, correct?" Sam sighed.

"Yes, Sir." He spun on a heel, and marched out of the office. As the doors closed, Jacque sighed, looking to the sky.

"Oh, Weiss, please come back soon. I don't need to lose you, too."

 _Days later . . ._

Jason stood in the cockpit, looking out over the bright, snowed-over landscape of Atlas, his home. Despite the heating units of the airship working as hard as they could, he could still see his breath. The rising Sun cast an orange light on the landscape. Scars from the innumerable battlefields and skirmishes still marked the land. Wreckages of great war machines lay scattered throughout the land. This would be quite beautiful, if it wasn't for one fact: that beneath the snow lay hundreds upon hundreds of bodies, Atleasian and rebel alike. The war had often devolved into trench warfare, with the rebels making many, many last-ditch attempts to hold the line by digging long, winding trenches, which would be attacked by wave after wave of Atlesian forces, until it inevitably broke, and the rebels were forced to fall back.

He sighed, before walking back to the cabin. Everyone slept as best they could, in the cold space, early in the morning. The only sound was the drone of the engines keeping the mass of metal in the air. Oh, and the snoring of about half the party. Jason made his way to the back of the ship, and sat down. He checked his metal arm, still working smoothly, and put on his gear, ready for action. As he loaded his weapons, someone yawned. He didn't bother looking up.

"'Morning." Yang said, standing up and, after putting on a winter jacket, walking over to Jason.

"You're up early." He said, loading the last round into _Winchester_. Yang smiled.

"You're one to talk." She said, and Jason chuckled, before putting his rifle back on his back. He sighed.

"So, we're in Atlas, finally." He stated after a few moments of silence.

"How can you tell?"

"Well, besides my ass being frozen off, I can recognize a bunch of the battlefields down on the land." He motioned towards the cockpit, and Yang walked over. Jason followed shortly.

"Woah." Was all that Yang said, staring out onto the white landscape. Jason chuckled at her reaction.

"What? Never seen snow before?" He joked, earning a punch in the arm.

"Shut up! It's just that, from the stories Weiss told us, I never expected it to be so, beautiful."

"It was better before the war started, I'll tell you that." He gave Yang a pat on the back, turning around. "I'll start getting people up, should arrive at the capitol soon. Mind helping?"

"Sure." She replied, and they went back into the cabin together.

 _Hours later . . ._

Jason knocked on the cold, metal door, while most of the group stood behind him, and the rest of his team stood watch. A slit opened.

"How f-far have you traveled?" The voice behind the door asked.

"From Vaculo heat to Mistral greens." Jason replied. The slit closed, and several locks could be heard being undone. Soon, the door opened.

"Come in, q-quickly!" The man said in a hushed voice, and Jason stepped aside, motioning for everyone else to go in. After making sure everyone else was in, he slipped inside, closing the door behind him. He turned to the man.

"Good to see you again, Torrent." Jason greeted the readhead who had let them in.

"You t-too, Jason. After the battle down south, I th-thought everyone was gone."

"Torry!" Ocean shouts tackling him in a hug. Jason and most of the group laughed.

"Y-yeah, missed you too, Ocean, now can you p-please let me up?" Torrent asked, as Ocean looked up, taking a few moments to process his request.

"Oh, sorry!" She stood up, helping up Torrent, before giving him a quick peck on the cheek.

"So, who is he?" Ruby asked.

"Oh, this is Torrent Grace, my boyfriend!" She said happily.

"H-hi." He said, waving nervously.

"Hi! I'm Ruby!" She exclaimed, offering Torrent a handshake, which he accepts.

 _That night . . ._

"You sure the info's correct?" Jason asked Torrent, as the two stood at a table, looking over a message from a rebel correspondent. It told of an Atlas military train heading into the city, that would add several dozen paladins and maybe a hundred knights to Atlas's garrison in the capital. It was coming next week.

"H-his information has been g-good before, so yes." The readhead replied, looking over a map.

"Alright, I'll come up with a plan, then tell it to the others." Torrent nodded, before heading off to bed, leaving Jason alone in the room. The rebel sighed, letting his head and eyes drop. "Shit." He mutters, before looking to the map his friend had been looking over. He pulls over a chair, and picks up the schematics for the standard Atlas military train. "Let's see what you've got, shall we?" He says, plotting how to hijack the train before it reached the city.


End file.
